It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains.

It’s Pride and Prejudice, with zombies. What more can I say?

This is a very funny book. A laugh out loud, constantly interrupt your husband’s homework to read bits and pieces to him sort of book. It has all sorts of different humor in it – parody, random absurdity, subtle irony, and (my least favorite) the sort of potty humor more commonly found in Southpark or Monty Python. I could have dealt without the last, but at least that wasn’t the focus in here.

I loved Pride and Prejudice. Purists are saying it ought not to be messed with, but I’m not so severe. I like parody, given it’s well done. Besides that, I really like morbid humor, and Jason is always encouraging me to throw zombies into my own writing, so this was sort of right up my alley. It feels like something Jason might have written, which made it all the more enjoyable to me. On the other hand, I don’t agree with the back of the book, which says, “Complete with romance, heartbreak, swordfights, cannibalism, and thousands of rotting corpses, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies transforms a masterpiece of world literature into something you’d actually want to read.” If I had to choose between the original and this, I’d choose the original, but I can’t deny this was superb.

One thing I worried about before reading – would this be gory? I don’t like gore. Thankfully, the book didn’t gross me out. Yes, there was gore, but all of it is written in such Austenesque language that it didn’t feel gory. So I was happy there. Even the vomiting, which I always can do without, didn’t bother me much. However, I can see why someone might not want to read this book if gore really bothers them. Just look at the front picture: bloody, but not terribly gross. That’s really how the whole book turned out.

As for my favorite scenes/quotes: I enjoyed the redone scene of Mr. Darcy’s original proposal, where he and Elizabeth Bennet end up physically sparring (illustration included!). Almost everything that comes out of Lady Catherine’s mouth is hilarious. Plus, there are “discussion questions” at the back of the book. They are all funny, but I like the last one the best:

Some scholars believe that the zombies were a last-minute addition to the novel, requested by the publisher in a shameless attempt to boost sales. Others argue that the hordes of living dead are integral to Jane Austen’s plot and social commentary. What do you think? Can you imagine what this novel might be like without the violent zombie mayhem?

So, what classics to do you believe would be the best redone with zombies? Personally, I’m voting for Lady Chatterley’s Lover and Zombies.